Chasing Clari
by Saffe - Aliza - Benedict
Summary: On an American exchange, Clari never imagined to find her Zack in her temporary home. Neither did she expect to be arrested by the Savant Net for a crime her father supposedly committed. Now her father is missing, Clair, her family and Zack are now in jeopardy as unknown forces come for them.
1. Chapter 1

"I won't let go! You're gonna be alright!" His voice pleaded to me.

Tears pooled in my eye as his dripped down his face. "You can't hold on forever." I said back my tear filled voice catching in my throat.

"I can hold on for as long as it takes." His voice was shaking, his arms weakening.

"This is all my fault."

"Don't say that."

I let the tears fall. "Just let go,"

"Don't say that either."

I stared up in to the blue-green eyes, once cold like the eerie river was now raging like a storm in despair. Our grip slipped. My heart soared with fright, the traffic below get louder. More intimidating. He tried to readjust his grip but lost all grip on my right arm. We both shrieked. There was no more time left. "I love you. And I'm so glad I met you, I experienced what it was like to be in heaven but alive." He shook his head arguing with me.

"And we can do it again. One we get off this building!"

I blocked out the rest of the world. Shutting off my senses. _I. Love. You. _

My fingers slipped from his sweaty grip. "ZACH!" I screamed.

"CLARI!"


	2. Chapter 2

Clarice's POV

I rubbed my eyes as I stepped off the Jet Bridge, 8 o'Clock in the morning, American time and tiredness was drowning me. I'd flown over from Nice, France to Connecticut, America for a French Exchange, though I'd turned it into a sort of holiday. Only a week was the exchange somewhere in this country with Yuriko Benedict - a very nice girl - and her family. But my elder Siblings, Théo, Anouk and Soren live in Connecticut with their soul-finders, courtesy of my father.

The airport wasn't busy, a low drone of various conversations filling the air around me. The smell of fresh coffee drifted to me.

"Clari!" I looked from the coffee to shop to my brother, Soren, a sign in his hand with 'ADORABLE CLARICE GASCON!' on it decorated in hand drawn stars and pictures and a cup of coffee. _Coffee. _

_Nice to see you too. _

I ran over to him, hand in hand with his soulfinder, Zuzka. Platinum Blonde Soren was a head taller than Zuzka who had her extremely long dark brunette hair that came to her backside in a braid and looked like Brunette Rapunzel.

"Hey, Clari, wow, you've grown since I last saw you!" He exclaimed, measuring me against him.

I laughed. "Or you've shrunk." I turned to Zuzka, who greeted me in her native language of Korean. She didn't look like a Korean as she was Polish born but adopted and raised in South Korea. She met Soren whilst touring in France with the world famous Pop Group _International 21! _in which she is a member off. 21 members from all over the globe, all with the amazing ability to sing whilst doing dance routines that where more like intensive work-outs. Whenever I tried to join in with the practices I was always out of breath by the first chorus.

"How are you?" He asked.

I pulled away from Zuzka but kept my arm around her back. "I'm jet lagged, real bad."

Zuzka squeezed me again. "So happy to have you here, Clari," She smiled, although sounding almost fully American. "Théo and Johnna are coming later; Anouk and Aarif are at home, waiting." She handed me the cup of coffee in her hand and a small bag with a pastry in it. "Breakfast."

I smiled gratefully. "Thanks." Soren took my bag and headed off to find me suitcase as Zuzka and I went towards the exit. She started telling me about a big drama between them and the neighbors a few days back and somehow Aarif got arrested in the midst of all of it.

"Clari." Zuzka stopped me as we walked into the early morning air. "It's not going to be all lovey-dovey Soulfinder stuff." She smiled. "You, me, Johanna and Anouk are going to spend some girl time together, I promise! As we are going out to California on my group's jet! That's where I'm meeting everyone else and Johanna just wants a holiday."

I giggled. "Great."

"Okay." Soren appeared behind us, lugging both my bags. A sleek silver car pulled moments later. "So when do you go to the exchange?"

I climbed in next to Zuzka. "Tomorrow." The driver placed my bags in the boot. "I'll be back with Yuriko in two weeks, and then we'll be going back to France."

"Where is it? And who is it?" He asked.

"Urh," I pulled the paper with the name and address from my pocket. "Yuriko Benedict. In Napa Valley, California. They live on a vineyard."

"Benedict?" Zuzka asked. I nodded, she glanced at Soren and then muttered in Korean as we headed away from the airport.

* * *

Zach's POV

My feet where on the homework spread out on my desk whilst I had every intention of doing it, I don't get into trouble for late homework, just fights and turning up late myself. I looked out onto the long stretch of vines surrounding the house. They seemed to go for miles, up and over the rolling hills.

A motorbike revved outside the front of the house. "Zachary!" My mom's voice came drifted up the stairs as I came down them. "Another Suspension!?" Arms folded on her chest, all five foot and seven inches of her trying to portray disappointment but it was quite obvious she wasn't entirely surprised. "Where are you going?!" She asked.

"Out, Virg is here." I pulled open the front door, Virgil sat on his bike.

"Ah talk of the devil." Mom said behind me. "Hiya, darling, how are you?" Virgil, one of my many siblings. My parents, Marika and Trace Benedict followed the tradition of the Savant world by having seven kids. Then paid tribute to my dad's brothers by naming us from T-Z. Tabitha, Urian, Virgil, Wiley, Xyla, Yuriko and Zach. I'm the youngest and stuck with a heavy dose being the Seventh.

"Fine, mom." He paused. "Zach, another suspension?" I rolled my eyes. I hate mind-reading siblings.

"You gonna hassle me about it too?" I asked. Jogging down the steps from the house. Virgil got off the bike and took the keys out. "Where are you goin'?" He laughed, kissing mom on the cheek.

"To see the rest of my family. Yuri! Xyla's here I can here her practicing dance routines. Is Wiley here?" I clenched my fist and my eyes, exhaling. Anger already raging through me. I just wanted a release. An escape.

"No, Wiley's not, here. I'm going to find him." I kicked a stone in the driveway, heading over the my bike.

"Zach!" I jumped onto my bike, ignoring my mom. Kicking it to life, I sped out of the driveway.

_Wiley._ I called out. _Wiley. _

_Sprout. _He sounded as though I'd interrupted him. _You have. What can I do for you? _

_I thought I'd __interrupted __you._

_You have, I was asleep, but tell me there's a family POW-WOW so I have an excuse to leave this boring seminar. _

I pulled up outside his apartment. _Something like that. _Wiley would know where I am, he's a human tracking device/GPS.

_I'll be there in five. _

He cut the connection.

* * *

**I know it was short, but tell me what you think. **


	3. Chapter 3

**안녕하세요! Or Hello. (An-yong-ha-se-yo - now you can greet people politely in Korean, An-yong can be said to friends and people younger than you, but you must always greet those older than you or people you don't know/haven't met before with An-yong-ha-se-yo, because it's respectful.)**

**Okay so I have been through and changed a few things in the previous chapters so do check them out and please leave a review on what you think!**

**감사함니다!**

* * *

Zach's POV

"So," Wiley clinked a teaspoon against the rim of the coffee cup. "Now that we've exchanged the normal hostile 'hi's and 'how are you's, what is it you are really here for?" He pushed the cup across the breakfast bar to me, before heavily sugaring his own. I sighed glancing over his apartment, the one he shared with Urian and Virgil. Tabs had resided here for a while before Mr. Perfect stumbled into her life and they disappeared to Australia. Though they were due back any day.

"I have no idea." Wiley looked at me and halted his stirring.

"You're not sure why you're really here?"

"No, I know why I'm here, I'm just..."

"Slipping?"

"Yea." Wiley sighed at my reply. "What do I do?" I asked, leaning back in the chair. "How come I'm the one slipping! You're fine, Virge's fine, Uri's fine...I think. Xyla, Yuri, fine. Tabs wasn't even phased before she met Ricky. Why me?"

"Seventh kid. You got it tough mate."

I looked up at him. "You think I don't know that?" He shrugged.

"I think you need to relax." I snorted. "Hey, listen to me or don't. Being a teenager, is hard. Being a Savant is hard. Being a Teenage Savant is..."

"Hard?" I finished. Wiley smiled. "I don't need to relax I need to do something productive."

Wiley sat in the seat next me. "School w..."

"I will hit you." Wiley laughed, everybody knows that we - the seven kids from Sky and Zed - don't particularly agree with the educational system. Mom insists it's comes from our dad, but she's always eager to stop working so there's always that to consider. Yuri and Wiley where the most school-orientated of all of us. Yuri with her languages and Wiley being this Maths/Science super genius from his Savant Gift.

"I'll talk to mom," I scowled at him. "About you sitting in one the next Savant Mission...thing."

I couldn't help but grin. I mean, even Yuri goes on them and she's only nine months older than me!

_That's because Yuriko is the female version of Uncle Yves. The whole energy thing. Except I'm smarter. _Wiley smiled. "When does Yukr's friend come?" He asked, pushing his coffee cup - still full - across the counter, into the sink where it undoubtedly smashed.

"Tomorrow." I said. "From what Yuri's told me, she's coming on a private Jet from Connecticut." I rolled my eyes, circling the rim of the cup with my finger.

"Pretentious family then." Wiley got up and retrieved himself a bear from the refrigerator. "Want one?"I flicked my gaze to him and lifted an eyebrow. "A soda," He added.

"Yea, too hot for coffee." The California weather was getting stupidly hot from the looks of Wiley but I have ice in my soul. Literally. Wiley may have be gifted with smartness, Yuri and Energy. I have Ice. So I'm fine. Not too hot, not too cold.

"Like you would know," Wiley handed me the can and took a sip from the brown bottle. "Not cold enough." He held the bottle out to me. "Please." I snapped open the can and took a drink, raising my brow once again at Wiley.

"What's in it for me?"

Wiley snorted. "Are you kidding me? Have you already forgotten what I just said I'd do?" I thought for a seocnd, cooling the liquid inside the can as I did it, to the extent frost collected on the outside of the can. I held out my hand for his drink, freezing it till it was practically an popcicle and handd it back. "Thank you, Elsa."

I swore at him. "I'm Jack Frost."

* * *

Mom, Dad and Yuriko had departed for the airport with Xyla not a few hours ago, turns out the student coming to stay with us is being accompanied by one of Xyla's friends from her dance group. Urian had been left in charge and mom had asked us to clean up our own mess and chores before they get back...and to the best of a boys ability as she so nicely put it.

Urian promised mom it would be done before they got back. Two hours, we all agreed it wasn't needed to be done immediately. "Shit, boys!" My eldest brother yelled. "They're due back in twenty minutes!"

It started the mad dash around the house. I wasn't exactly screaming round the house at lightening speed but I jogged to keep up my pace. The alarm in the kitchen beeped signalling someone had opened the gates. "They're here!"

Trust Wiley to point out the obvious.

* * *

**Clarice's POV**

Yuriko was awesome, in seconds I already knew I liked her - although I knew she wasn't Japanese, I was expecting some sort of Asian heritage but she's 100% American. Zuzka and Yuri's sister Xyla already knew each other and departed with Soren for LA after the meet and greet. Now, after travelling along a winding path through field upon field of vineyards, filled with growing grapes doused in the beating sunlight, we arrived, driving through a metal gate onto the gravel. Yuri and I had climbed into the back of the Pick-up and sat on the side most of the way. Trees shaded the driveway, sunlight peeped through the cracks in the canopy like sunlight and I felt like I was back in France.

"So I have six other brothers and sisters," Yuri explained as we neared a very orchid house covered in vines - ivy, not grape.

"I've already met Xyla." I added.

"And that leaves five!" Yuri was very surprised at my English and didn't hold back in announcing her relief we shared a common language, and that we wouldn't spend the week communicating through a French-to-English dictionary and Google Translate. We pulled up in front of the house as the wooden doors opened and four shirtless boys spilled out onto the veranda. Yuri snorted. "They're all self-centered. Guys this is Clarice Gascon or Clary as she prefers to be called." She introduced, walking to the end of the truck and jumping over. "My four brothers," She announced as her parents got out the cab and she pulled down the back of the truck. "Urian, Virgil, Wiley, and...where's Zack?" Yuri asked.

'Wiley' jerked his head to the house. "In there."

"I hope you got the house done." Their mum, Marika, warned. They nodded triumphantly. I slid of the tailgate of the truck and pulled my suitcase(s) with me. Yuri's brother Virgil taking it off me.

"Merci." I smiled. He waved his hand.

"Sure." Obviously he didn't speak French.

Yuri linked her arm with mine and walked me into the house. A very traditional vineyard house that had the essence of Southern France, I already felt at home and knew the homesickness wasn't going to be as bad. Looking around my eyes came upon the stairs, where probably the most handsomest boy I'd probably ever meet was standing. Casually leaning against the wall, looking at me.

"Is this the French person who is going to be staying?" He asked, pointing a slender finger in my direction. "Does she even speak English?"

"Yea, I'm staying, I hope you don't mind." I answered, taking him by surprise. " And this French Person has an English mother, so she speaks very good English." He tucked away his hands as his brother laughed behind me.

"Clari, this is Zack. Zack be nice." Yuri warned.

"Hi Zack, it's nice to meet you." I smiled, politely trying to make up for the comment that was probably a little too rude.

"Yep." Was all I got as he trudged back up the stairs. Virgil went up after her him as Wiley announced he wanted to talk to his parents something.

The two other boys relocated to the kitchen leaving Yuri and I. "Well, first impressions went well." I said.

Yuri squeezed my shoulders. "He'll warm up, not that his opinion matters of course, but..." She picked up one of my suitcases. "Teenager. Which means he's probably on his man period." I laughed with Yuri at her...quirkyness.


End file.
